


The Sound Of The Ocean

by UngentlemanlyConduct



Series: DanganRonpa/Love Live!: Melody of Despair [3]
Category: Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: Depression, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, It’s not a sad story guys dw
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-02
Updated: 2019-11-02
Packaged: 2020-07-28 00:14:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20054872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UngentlemanlyConduct/pseuds/UngentlemanlyConduct
Summary: Having lost her inspiration, a prodigal pianist moves home to rekindle her passion.Having been struck by tragedy, a lost soul stays trapped by her grief almost a year later.Alone, they cannot be saved. Together, with a little help, maybe they could save each other.(A prequel to DanganRonpa/Love Live!: Melody of Despair)





	1. Prelude (Flames die without room to breathe)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A pianist in the big city loses her creative spark.

> … world news now, and the Portuguese government have declared a state of emergency across the Algarve. It follows the deadliest storm in the region for twenty years - which has killed hundred and forced many more from their homes. While officials say the worst has passed and recovery is moving faster than expected, they have also warned the death toll could still rise in the coming days.

Riko turned the TV off and sighed. Her mom had left it on the news for her before she left, but today’s reports were just so bleak and depressing… she wanted no part of it. With a huff, she got up and went back to her piano seat, ready to try and push on. She brought her fingers over the keys. They were prepared to dance, and leap, and bring a new masterpiece into the world.

Yet, they hesitated. As they have been for a week now. It was fine if Riko played one of her older pieces, or recited a classic - but she always froze up when she wanted her creative juices to flow. All the sound that came from her room was a deafening silence.  
The worst sound a pianist could hear.

In the end, she let her head fall on the keys, a jarring, discordant noise emanating from the piano. It perfectly summed up her mood. Yes, she’s had blips like this before. They’d come and go like the cherry blossoms, and she’d push right through them to compose new, brilliant pieces - but this time… it felt different. This time, it felt as though a cold wind had blown out the fire to create. Riko had lost something, and didn’t know how to get it back.  
What was she going to do?

* * *

** _ELEVEN MONTHS LATER…_ **

Riko gently picked up the picture frame and put into the box on her desk. She loved this picture and the memory it held. Her family had taken her to the park that day for a picnic - the sun shone brightly, the flowers were in bloom, and everyone was in good spirits. They were all so happy here.  
It was hard for her to believe that, by tomorrow, they’d leave all of that behind.  
By tomorrow, they would be living in a new home, by the sea.

She could understand why her parents would choose to move the family, though. As hard as she tried to find some inspiration, Riko just couldn’t push past her mental block - and the frustration was starting to get to her, in a bad way. Her passion for playing the piano was fading away, and was slowly becoming less and less talkative about the subject. Worried for their daughter, her parents thought a change of scenery would help her. A change of pace, a quieter life. Away from the hustle and bustle, and distractions galore. They had found a quaint home, in a sleepy town, with new opportunities…

But still, it all felt unreal. They were starting a new life, far from the one they’ve known, the only one she’s ever known. They were leaving everything behind, and the thought scared her to death.

Riko finished packing the last of her things into the box, and her room suddenly felt much colder. It was like she had never set foot in here. Sighing, she put her headphones into her ears and threw on whatever song her music player found first - and was greeted with the pleasant, familiar notes of _Clair de Lune._  
The first song her piano tutor showed her. The first song she learned to play herself.  
She peered through the curtains and, sure enough, the moon shone back at her in all its majesty. For her, it outshone every artificial light in the city - and maybe the whole world.

Riko shut the curtains again and lay on her bed, reading the new message on her phone before settling into bed.

> Good luck with the move tomorrow! Call me when you’ve settled in!  
Kaede x

Of course. Miss Akamat… Kaede’d want to know how she’ll get on in her new home, this Uchiura. It’d definitely be interesting for her, and much quieter. Hopefully, she could catch her spark there.  
Maybe a few new friends as well… yeah, that sounds nice…

Despite her anxiety over tomorrow, Riko had a pleasant dream.


	2. Melodiam (New song for a new life)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riko moves into her new home.

The sun peeked its head over the horizon, its golden rays driving away the darkness of the night. The light of the new day pierced trough Riko’s closed eyes, stirring her from her dream. Wiping away the sleep, she warily woke up…  
and saw an endless blue outside her window.

Riko’s golden eyes widened in wonder. She never imagined she’d see this much blue in the world, and oh how pretty it was. The little flecks of sunlight bouncing off the waves, the way the waves’ unique crests were highlighted - it was like a picture from a fairytale. There was no way it could be real, but it was.  
This was where Riko would be living her life, from now on.

“Oh, Riko? Is that you?” Her mom must’ve heard her stir, despite the car’s droning, and Riko sleepily responded. Her parents insisted on waking early and driving down at some godforsaken hour, instead of sleeping at night like normal people.  
To dodge the morning traffic, dad said.  
“We’re almost there now. Try and get a bit more sleep.”  
“I’ll try.” But that was a lie. All she wanted to do now was keep looking at that deep water, the gorgeousness and the vividness of the sea. It was kind of inspiring for her.

Time passed back and forth with the waves, washing away her worries from the last night - and almost half an hour after she woke up she felt the car slow down and eventually stop. A quick look out through the car’s other side told her why.  
They were here. Her new house… no, her new _home._  
They were in Uchiura.

Riko thought she couldn’t be more taken with this place already, but she was wrong. A quaint little building - she reckoned was two stories high - painted in a gentle white which glowed in the sunlight. A small garden sat by the front of the house, growing small yet delicate flowers. There was even a balcony on the second floor, that would let them watch the sea at any time of day.  
The young pianist was instantly smitten. And when they went inside, her heart glowed again. The outside clearly didn’t show the space inside. It was big - far bigger than their old apartment in the city, with plenty of living and dining space, and a fancy kitchen to boot. She never saw herself as a good cook, but with all these gizmos around she thought she’d give it a try.

“Riko?” Her dad found her eyeing one of the fancy tools on the counter. “I’ll show you your room when you’re ready.”  
“Coming, dad.” She replied, and followed him up the stairs. There wasn’t much of note here yet, but she could see a fairly large bathroom through one of the doors, painted in a soft, inviting blue. Riko’s father opened up a door next to it, and she walked into the most _beautiful_ room in the house so far.  
“Dad, this is…” Words couldn’t even begin to describe how amazing this room was. A built-in wardrobe, perfectly polished wooden floor, walls already coated in her favourite shades of pink… and the balcony! She was getting that wonderful balcony! “I love it, dad!” She hugged her father, affirming her love for him, before rushing off to the balcony and look outside of her room - to the view that enamoured her so much on the way here. Perhaps it would look even better from this vantage point.

“Wow…” She wasn’t wrong. To her right, from the higher ground, the vast expanse of the sea seemed to roll on forever. From her position, she could now see a green jut of land far in the distance, the spectacular Mount Fiji climbing high into the sky. She took it all in, the greens of the garden and trees, the blues of the sky and water… even the more traditional building adjacent seemed more beautiful here.  
She was already in love with Uchiura.  
…  
Oh?

Riko saw someone through the other building’s window, looking back at her. She couldn’t tell much about her - long, unkempt orange hair, tired eyes, a blend of sadness and surprise etched into her. Maybe the girl wasn't expecting someone to be on the other side, but maybe the pianist’s presence in the house caught her out. Thinking she was her new neighbour, she started to introduce herself, but her dad called her again, driving her attention to him.  
“Riko, the moving van’s here. Could you help us bring the stuff into the house?” He asked.  
“Yes, dad, I’ll be there in a minute.” She answered, before turning back to the window and the girl - but she had disappeared. Huh. She may have had to go and do something else, like her.

Never mind, she could always introduce herself later.  
Riko closed the balcony doors and went down to help her family move in.


	3. Arietta (We are her protectors)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Relaxing by the beach, Riko meets some new faces.

There was something about the golden sands here in Uchiura that enchanted Riko this morning. Of course, with helping unpack her boxes and arranging their new home she didn’t have a chance to visit yet. But now, in the cooler evening sun, she could finally head down to the beach and take it in for herself.

By the gods, it was gorgeous. As she had imagined this morning, the surface was soft and grainy under her feet and filled with a pleasant warmth. The sun itself had started to start its slow descent downwards, casting the sky in a soft orange glow. Again, the specks of light danced on the calm ocean waves - but the image this time conjured a soft serenade, almost like a natural lullaby. 

It was, to put it best, a perfect end to a very long day. There was the whisper of a new and exciting song, blowing in the cool air, and Riko could feel every beat of it.  
Miss Akamat… Kaede said she had something called ‘song-vision’ - she was able to put whatever sights she saw into a musical form in her mind. She could imagine the sounds of everything - a brush of wind through the trees, birds cruising across a clear blue sky - even something as mundane as a convenience store held a myriad of melodies for her to unearth.  
Which made her piano compositions extraordinary… 

_*sigh*_

It’s been a long time since she’s created some music, though. It was a shame for her that those beautiful melodies around her would never see the light of day. Frustrated, Riko kicked some of the sand towards the waves - which attracted the attention of a creature. A huge, white beast, with a golden crown and tail and a soft, thick fur covering. Yet the now-terrified pianist knew such an innocent appearance only hid the deadly fangs beneath.  
**“Woof!”** The dog’s bark was enough to send her into a flying panic, her feet racing her halfway up the beach. The beast followed her pursuit, tongue lolloping by its side, happy as can be. In the end, Riko had to dive behind two strangers just to try and keep it from getting to her.

"Whoa, Shiitake!" One of them called to the dog, who slowly came over to them. "Come on now, don't chase strangers around like that, you silly pup!" Rolling over on its side, the girl gave them a gentle cuddle, sating their mood.  
“Are you okay?” The other stranger asked Riko, who nodded nervously. She didn’t trust this beast, this… Shiitake, not to jump up again. “Not keen on dogs, huh? Shiitake’s actually quite gentle, she just gets a bit excited meeting new people.” Riko still didn’t say anything back. “Hey Tsuki, you should take her back. I don’t think she’ll relax while she’s there.”   
“_Sì,_ Kanan!” Tsuki ruffled the dog’s fur, then encouraged it away from the group, away from the beach, and - more importantly for Riko - away from _her.   
_

“You feeling better now?”   
“Yeah… a little.” Riko finally answered. “I… I’m so sorry about that.” 

“Hey, no worries! I guess a big dog like her could spook anyone.” She laughed, before extending her hand. “Kanan Matsuura. I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before.” With a little reservation in case that dog came back, Riko accepted her greeting.  
“Nice to meet you, Kanan. I’m Riko. Riko Sakurauchi. I just moved here today.”  
“Oh, the move was _today?_” Kanan asked with some surprise, before relaxing a little. “Ehehe, sorry Riko. It’s a small place here, any news around here travel fast.” 

“Kanan!” The other girl had come back, thankfully without the dog. “Y’know that house next to Tochiman’s? The one that got sold a few weeks back? The new family moved in this morning - well, that’s what Mito told me anyway.”   
“I know, Tsuki. This is Riko Sakurauchi, she moved into that house.” 

_‘Oh great,’_ Riko thought to herself. _‘They know where I live already.’_  
It wasn’t like she wanted visitors, but not so soon!

“Oh. _Oooh! _I was wondering where you came from! Name’s Tsuki Watanabe! _Piacere di conoscerti_, Riko!”   
“Err…” Whatever Tsuki just said was just a word salad to her.  
“It’s Italian. Means, ‘nice to meet ya!’ I lived there for a few years before coming back.”   
“Oh, I see. Then, it’s nice to meet you too, Tsuki. Err… was that dog, yours?” 

“Hehe, I wish she was!” Tsuki joked. “No, Shiitake’s a part of the family next door to you. They own and manage the Tochiman Inn. It’s quite a popular place for tourists in the summer - you’ve missed the big rush.”   
“Yeah, but lately, they’ve been going through some, er… personal problems. Nothing wrong with the business, but they’re struggling. So Tsuki and I have been doing odd things to help them out, like taking Shiitake for walks.”   
“I’m sorry to hear that. Please, let me know if I can do anything to help as well.” 

“Thanks, Riko. I’m sure they’ll appreciate the help.” A sudden barking, and the red-haired girl shrieked and cowered behind the two again. “Aww, _Shiitake!_ Come on, now! You _know_ you need to look out for her! Sorry, Riko. She’s not usually like this.”   
“It’s okay, Kanan. I… I really should be, getting back anyway - b-but…”  
“Don’t worry, Ri!” Tsuki quickly caught onto her fear. “I’ll make sure she stays clear of you!”

With the agility and grace of a gymnast she scaled the wall up to the road above, trapping the dog in a relentless snuggle - and the distraction gave the chance for Riko and Kanan to slip by and make her way to her new home. Now safe, the pianist invited Kanan for a drink.   
“Thanks, Riko, but I should probably get back to Tsuki, and make sure Shiitake stays home this time. But was nice to meet you anyway!”   
“You too, Kanan.” Exchanging farewells, Riko retreated back inside her house, committing their faces to memory. Would they be at her new school on Monday? She hoped they would - a friendly face would be very welcome.


End file.
